Concert Hall ATM, ART TOWER MITO

Mito Arts Foundation
1-6-8 Goken-cho, Mito-shi, Ibaraki-ken, 310-0063 Japan
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Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO) 66th Regular Concert



Reunion and Advance

Everyone has been waiting for this moment: Jun Markl's return to Mito. In 2004, he made his debut with the MCO in their 57th Regular Concert, where he captivated the audience with his forceful music that reverberated to the soul.

Now, two and half years later, Markl marks his reappearance with MCO with three pieces selected especially for his reunion with Mito listeners. The first is Richard Strauss's 20th-century work ? the refined "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme" -- that breathes life again into the spirit of Moliere (1622-73), the 17th French theater writer and director. The second piece is Britten's "Serenade," written in the midst of the Second World War, which healed the wounded hearts of people of the time by evoking the romanticism of a golden evening from the distant past. Supported by Britain's top tenor Ian Bostridge, who combines intellectuality with a beautiful voice, along with the unmatched French horn of MCO's Radek Baborak, Markl is the prime person to lead us into that world. Finally, in Beetoven's Eighth Symphony, Markl reveals how that revolutionary composer harks back to classical forms while being playful to the fullest extent, splendidly laughing it off.

All three pieces in the program are brimming with the spirit of "pouring new wine into old containers." That may just be what Jun Markl believes classical music to be: keeping traditions while advancing forward.


Nov. 18, 2006 (Sat) 7:00 p.m. (doors open for seating at 6:30 p.m.)
Nov. 19, 2006 (Sun) 2:00 p.m. (doors open for seating at 1:30 p.m.)
Concert Hall ATM
Conductor: Jun Markl
Tenor soloist: Ian Bostridge
Horn soloist: Radek Baborak

-- Richard Strauss: Suite, "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme," Op. 60
-- Benjamin Britten: Serenade, Op. 31
-- Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93

All seats reserved. Tickets now on sale.
S ¥10,000 / A ¥8,000 / B ¥6,000

Jun Markl, Conductor
Born in 1959 in Munich, Germany, with a German violinist for his father and a Japanese pianist for his mother. After getting degrees in the Hanover Academy of Music in violin, piano, and conducting, he honed his craft under Serge Celibidache. In 1986, he won the grand prize at the conductors' competition run by the German Music Council. Having received a scholarship from the Boston Symphony Orchestra, he participated in the Tanglewood Music Festival, studying under Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. In 1993, he made his debut with the Vienna State Opera, directing Puccini's "Tosca." Since then, he has appeared as guest conductor with the Vienna State Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Bavarian State Opera, among others. Between 1994 and 2000 he served as the musical and artistic director of the Mannheim State Opera. In addition, he has been welcomed as guest conductor by such institutions as the North German Radio Symphony, the Paris Orchestra, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
In 1997, he made his Japnese debut as a special concert with the NHK Symphony Orchestra. Since then, he has been invited almost yearly by the same organization. In September 2005, he assumed the post of musical director at the Lyon National Orchestra of France. Starting next year, in September 2007, he will concurrently serve as musical director of the Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra. Markl made his first appearance with the Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO) in their 57th Regular Concert in 2004, receiving rounds of fervent applause for his renditions of Haydn's "Clock" Symphony and Schoenberg's "Verklarte Nacht."

Ian Bostridge, Tenor
Representative British tenor. After getting a Ph.D. in history from Corpus Christi College at Oxford University, Bostridge began his career as a singer in earnest. Having given recitals in major halls worldwide, he has participated in music festivals in Edinburgh, Vienna, Munich, and elsewhere, garnering a reputation as one of the top Lied singers in the world. Also, he has performed with such top orchestras as the Berlin Philharmonic and the Vienna Philharmonic, under the direction of such directors as Seiji Ozawa, Simon Rattle, and Colin Davis. Bostridge is also actively involved in recording, having produced such CDs as a collection of Britten songs with the Berlin Philharmonic, directed by Simon Rattle (and with Radek Baborak on horn), "Die schoe Mullerin" with Mitsuko Uchida, and "Winterreise" with Leif Ove Andsnes.
He is also quite active in the field of opera, having performed with such groups as the English National Opera and the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

Radek Baborak, Horn
Born in Czechoslovakia in 1976, Radek Baborak started studying the horn at age eight. Starting in 1989, he studied under Zden?k Tyl?ar at the Prague Music Conservatory. In 1992, Baborak placed third in the 1992 Prague Spring International Music Competition, and won 2nd prize at the 1993 Geneva International Music Competition (no grand prize awarded that year). He took the grand prize at the 1994 Munich International Competition, capturing the musical world's attention as the "child wonder of the horn" at the age of 18. With a broad repertory ranging from baroque to modern music, Baborak has performed with the Bavaria Radio Symphony Orchestra, Berlin German Symphony Orchestra, and others, and his brilliant technique and maturity beyond his years are the topics of conversation. So far, he has served as the horn soloist of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra. Also, he has performed with major orchestras worldwide, starting with the Saito Kinen rchestra. Has performed with the Berlin Philharmonic since 2003 as a horn soloist. Baborak is a member of the MCO.



Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO) 67th Regular Concert



Recovery and Joy

There is probably no one who didn't pray for Seiji Ozawa's recovery. Having rested his overworked wings for a while, the great maestro has now suffused his whole body with renewed energy and is ready to fly again.

Now serving as MCO's musical adviser again after a 18-month hiatus, Ozawa has selected three works to mark the first step of his recovery. The first is Mozart's 23rd Piano Concerto, the wistful and lyrical 2nd movement of which makes it stand out even among the numerous piano concerto masterpieces composed by this master. Next, Ozawa has chosen "Tsukiyo no Hasu (Lotus under the moonlight)" by Toshio Hosokawa, a representative modern Japanese composer, who wrote the piece in homage of Mozart based on the aforementioned 2nd movement. Performing as the piano soloist in these two pieces, Momo Kodama makes her first appearance with MCO. She has frequently appeared together with Ozawa, and is known for her excellent interpretations of a broad range of repertory, from the classics to Messiaen and even Toru Takemitsu. Finally, the maestro presents Mozart's last symphony, "Jupiter," the ultimate masterpiece in which that composer invested his highest level of splendor and dynamism. This is MCO's debut of this piece under Ozawa.

Now with the Mozart Year drawing to a close, no other pieces seem more appropriate than these. The bliss of hearing them played by MCO under Ozawa ? let us welcome his recovery with joy.


Dec. 7, 2006 (Thu) 7:00 p.m. (doors open for seating at 6:30 p.m.)
Dec. 8, 2006 (Fri) 7:00 p.m. (doors open for seating at 6:30 p.m.)
Dec. 9, 2006 (Sat) 7:00 p.m. (doors open for seating at 6:30 p.m.)
Concert Hall ATM
Conductor: Seiji Ozawa
Piano soloist: Momo Kodama

-- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concert No. 23 in C Major, K.488
-- Toshio Hosokawa (b. 1955): "Tsukiyo no Hasu (Lotus under the moonlight)" for Piano and Orchestra Homage to Mozart (Japan debut)
-- Mozart: Symphony No. 41 in C Major, K.551, gJupiterh

All seats reserved.
S ¥13,000 / A ¥11,000 / B ¥8,000 Sorry, sold out.


Seiji Ozawa, Conductor
Born in 1935 in prewar Hoten, Manchuria (now Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China).
Having studied piano from a young age, Ozawa entered the Toho Gakuen School of Music, studying conducting under the famed Hideo Saito. In 1959, he won the grand prize at the Besancon International Young Directors Contest in France. Studying further under Herbert von Karajan, Ozawa served as the assistant director to Leonard Bernstein in the 1961-62 season for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
After that, he served as the music director for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, and from 1973 to 2002, was the music director for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 2002, he moved to Europe, becoming the music director the Vienna State Opera House. Additionally, he has appeared frequently as guest conductor with such top-class groups as the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Milan Scala Opera House, and the Paris Opera House, building up a firm reputation as one fthe world's most famous conductors.
His activities have extended beyond conducting: since 1992, he has led the Saito Kinen Festival in Matsumoto, Japan, and since 2002, has run the Seiji Ozawa Ongaku-juku, a program in which young Japanese and Asian musicians, selected by audition, form orchestras and choirs to study music through opera.
Ozawa serves as a musical advisor to the Mito Chamber Orchestra (MCO), and is involved deeply in the ensemble's management, including program choice and member selection.


Momo Kodama, Piano
Born in Osaka, Japan, Kodama moved to Europe shortly after her first birthday. At the age of 16, she graduated from the Conservatoire National Superieur de Paris, where she had the chance to study under the late Germaine Mounier, later continuing her studies with Tat'yana Nikolayeva, Andras Schiff, Murray Perahia, and Vera Gornostaeva. The following year, she was selected to appear in the Theatre du Chatelet's "Youth and Master" series, at which she made her Parisian debut performing along with Jean-Jacques Kantorow. Kodama has presented recitals and participated in international music festivals in such illustrious venues as the Whigmore Hall in London and the Tonhalle in Zurich. Also, she has performed with first-rate conductors and orchestras such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra (led by Seiji Ozawa) and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (led by Kent Nagano). In April 2006, she performed with the North German Radio Symphony, conducted by Jun Markl, and played the world's debut of Toshio Hosokawa's "Tsukiyo no Hasu (Lotus under the moonlight)." She has made three CD's so far, all released by Octavia Records: "Debussy: impressions," "Chopin Piano Collection," and Messiaen's Vingt Regards sur l"Enfant-Jesus." Kodama won the Arion Encouragement Prize of 1994, the 7th Idemitsu Music Prize in 1997, and the 9th Terrence Judd Prize (U.K.) in 1999. She currently makes her home in Paris.


Supported by: Daiichi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

Point Inc.

Zaidanhojin Genden Fureai Ibaraki Zaidan (Japan Atomic Power Co. Ibaraki Foundation)

YOSHIDA OIL CO.,LTD.
Cooperation: All Nippon Airways (ANA)

Mito Chamber of Commerce & Industry



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Translated by Paul T. Narum
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